The First Tank War

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The proposed mechanical solutions to the stalemate of the Great War (1914-1918) included big-wheel landships, wheeled bridge-pushers, trench-straddling personnel carriers, self-propelled artillery, and machine-gun carriers. The preferred acquisition was named "tank," but even the tank remained contested, between different weights, armaments, types of mobility, and protection levels. The doctrine too remained contested. Indeed, many of the same questions are asked today. Should tanks surprise the enemy or be preceded by bombardment? Should tanks assault by day or night? Should they be concentrated or distributed? Should they be combined with all arms, some arms, or no other arm? Should they lead or follow other arms? Should they sustain a penetration or hit and run? Should they hold objectives or rally to the rear? Should they aim at enemy fortifications, or infantry, or artillery, or supplies, or headquarters? Going back to the archives and the battlefields, this book reviews the doctrines and battles of the Great War, and rediscovers the enduring principles of mechanized warfare. 254 pages, 23 maps, 23 tables of data, 26 photographs